Monday, September 22, 2008

Corey Chisel: Midwest Magic

The warmth and familial nature of his voice brings to mind like-minded heartland songwriters such as Peter Himmelman and maybe Greg Brown, when he's in a good mood.

But, the way he starts a song with a church organ (his Dad is a preacher), adds an electric jangle here, a clarinet there and blends his raw, wide-open-with-possibilities voice with female counterpart Adriel Harris, a hymnal, anthemic song takes flight and just doesn't come down.

I haven't been able to get any of the songs off his new EP, Cabin Ghosts out of my head since it landed on my desk. He recorded several of the songs live in front of a hometown crowd.

Corey Chisel might get stuck in your brain once you see the video for "See It My Way." Notice the added chorus of a pooch!